SB-0562, As Passed House, November 1, 2017

SB-0562, As Passed Senate, October 5, 2017

SUBSTITUTE FOR

SENATE BILL NO. 562

     A bill to amend 1955 PA 10, entitled

"Michigan historical markers act,"

by amending sections 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10 (MCL

399.151, 399.152, 399.153, 399.154, 399.155, 399.156, 399.157,

399.158, 399.159, and 399.160), sections 1 and 2 as amended and

sections 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10 as added by 2002 PA 488.

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:

     Sec. 1. This act shall be known and may be cited as the

"Governor John B. Swainson Michigan historical markers act".

Sec. 2. As used in this act:

     (a) "Application" means applying a request for the placement

of an official Michigan historical marker at the location of a

historic resource or site and for the resource's or site's listing

in the state register of historic sites.

     (b) "Center" means the Michigan historical history center

established in the department.Michigan history center act, 2016 PA

470, MCL 399.801 to 399.812.

     (c) "Commission" means the Michigan historical commission

created in section 1 of 1913 PA 271, MCL 399.1.3 of the Michigan

historical commission act, 2016 PA 469, MCL 399.833.

     (d) "Department" means the department of history, arts, and

libraries created in section 3 of the history, arts, and libraries

act, 2001 PA 63, MCL 399.703.natural resources.

     (e) "Fund" means the Michigan history center operations fund

created in section 8 of the Michigan history center act, 2016 PA

470, MCL 399.808.

(f) (e) "Historic resource" means a publicly or privately

owned building, structure, site, object, or open space of historic

significance to Michigan.this state, including places associated

with a significant individual, group, or event in this state.

(g) (f) "Historic significance" means value in relation to

historical, architectural, archaeological, engineering,

technological, or cultural disciplines.

     (h) "Marker" or "official Michigan historical marker" means

Michigan historical marker signage as approved by the commission

under this act.

     (i) "Michigander" means a resident of the state of Michigan.

(j) (g) "Person" means an individual, partnership,

corporation, association, or other private legal entity.

(k) (h) "Work" means construction, addition, alteration,

repair, moving, excavation, or demolition.

     Sec. 3. Historic The preservation of history, culture, and

related public education are declared to be public purposes. In

fulfillment of these purposes, the department may administer a

Michigan historical marker program. with the following goals:After

formal consultation with the commission, the department may enter

into an agreement to assist with administration of the Michigan

historical marker program. Using modern professional practices, the

center shall ensure that the Michigan historical marker program

meets the following goals:

     (a) Identify and locate historic sites, and events, objects,

subjects, and persons having historic significance to this state.

     (b) Educate the public about significant people, places,

events, and things in Michigan history and thereby develop the

public's knowledge of the importance of Michigan history.

     (c) Encourage the public to preserve historic resources

indicative of Michigan history and to develop a sense of identity

as Michiganians.Michiganders.

     (d) Enhance cultural tourism in this state by encouraging

residents and visitors to investigate Michigan history historic

resources and the this state's historic heritage sites.

     (e) Unite people from various regions of this state through

improved dissemination of information about historic resources and

places.and this state's heritage and cultural resources.

     Sec. 4. The department may list a historic resource or site in

shall maintain the state register of historic sites. and

commemorate the resource or site with the placement of an official

Michigan historical marker if the historic resource or site meets

written criteria adopted by the department upon recommendation of

the commission.Markers and locations approved by the commission

shall be added to the state register of historic sites. The

department shall provide information to the public regarding the

state register of historic sites, the marker database, and the

Michigan historical marker program through online, printed, or

other media.

     Sec. 5. (1) An application may be filed by 1 of the following

persons or agencies:

     (a) A person owning or in possession of a historic resource or

site or a person having written consent from the owner or person in

possession of a historic resource. or site.

     (b) A department or agency of this state or of a political

subdivision of the this state owning, controlling, or in possession

of a historic resource. or site.

     (c) The commission on its own motion with consent from the

landowner.

     (2) A person or agency may submit an application for a marker

to the center only on a form prescribed by and obtained from the

center in consultation with the commission. The form shall include

all requested information and be accompanied by the following

attachments:

     (a) Current and, if available, historic images. , as

prescribed by the center.

     (b) Documentation supporting representations in the

application from a recognized and authoritative source acceptable

to the center, sources, supporting the historic significance of the

historic resource. This documentation shall demonstrate the

historic significance of the historic resource.

     (c) Any additional documents required by the center.requested.

     (3) An application and all attachments submitted to the center

under subsection (2) become the property of the this state.

     (4) An applicant other than an agency shall pay the center an

application fee of $250.00 at the time an application is submitted.

The center may not process an application without this fee. The

center shall forward the fee to the state treasurer for deposit the

fee in into the historical marker fund. created in section 9. The

center shall refund the fee if the center decides the historic

resource is not eligible for a historical marker.

     (5) The center shall review each application for completeness

and accuracy. The center's review may include verification of the

accuracy of furnished information and the location of the historic

resource or site. The center may require request the applicant to

furnish additional information considered necessary to complete the

center's review of the application and attachments. Center

representatives may visit the site if necessary.

     (6) Submission of an application does not guarantee that a

historic resource or site will receive an official Michigan

historical marker. If the center commission concludes that the

application meets the criteria for the placement of an official

Michigan historical marker, the center commission shall endorse

approve the application and the center shall work with the sponsor

to prepare marker text for presentation to the commission. However,

if the center commission concludes that the application fails to

meet a criterion or another requirement for placement of a marker,

the center shall notify the applicant of that decision in writing

and shall specify the reason or reasons why the application is

denied.

     (7) If the commission approves an application for a marker,

the center shall arrange for a marker to be prepared. The center

shall give a preference to a qualified Michigan-based company for

the preparation of the marker. Before a marker is ordered, the

applicant shall pay the full actual cost of the marker.

     Sec. 6. (1) Upon receipt of an application and proposed marker

text from the center, the The commission shall review, modify if

necessary, and approve the appropriate text, and review and approve

the location for each requested historical marker. The commission

shall exercise its judgment and discretion in revising and

approving proposed marker text and may advise the department on

matters pertaining to applications and related decisions. The

department shall issue an official site number for each historic

resource or site designated for placement of an official Michigan

historical marker.

     (2) An official Michigan historical marker shall not include

or mention the name of a living commissioner or any other living

state official.

     (3) An official Michigan historical marker shall include the

words "Michigan historical history center , department of history,

arts, and libraries". and Michigan historical commission". The To

comply with this subsection, the department may retrofit alter a

marker that does not include these words.

     (4) An official Michigan historical marker shall have may

reference Michigan as the "Great Lakes State" and shall meet all of

the following requirements:

     (a) Be dark green with gold lettering.

     (b) Have a logo or seal with a wolverine emblem in its upper

area or crest. and include

     (c) Include the words "registered Michigan historic site".

     (5) The department may enter into a written agreement with

another state, local, or federal agency regarding the placement of

an official Michigan historical marker on property under the

jurisdiction of the agency. The agreement may address security,

payment for the marker, and other appropriate matters.

     Sec. 7. (1) An official Michigan historical marker approved by

the department and the commission is the property of the state of

Michigan and is subject to the exclusive control of the department,

whether erected on public or private property. In addition to other

text on the marker, each marker shall include the conspicuous

statement "property of the state of Michigan".

     (2) The department shall not abandon an official Michigan

historical marker. In all legal proceedings, in this state or

elsewhere, there shall be is an irrebuttable presumption against

abandonment of the state of Michigan's ownership of an official

Michigan historical marker.

     (3) A Except pursuant to written permission of the department,

a person or agency in possession of a historic resource or site

where an official Michigan historical marker is displayed shall not

attempt to convey, sell, or otherwise transfer the marker, . A and

a conveyance, sale, or transfer of the marker is void. unless made

pursuant to written permission from the department.

     (4) Upon discovering that an official Michigan historical

marker may have been stolen or otherwise improperly or unlawfully

removed from the historic resource or site where it was placed, the

department, with advice and assistance from the attorney general,

may commence an action, in this state or elsewhere, to recover the

marker.

     (5) Upon discovering that an official Michigan historical

marker has been marred, vandalized, or otherwise damaged, the

department, with advice and assistance from the attorney general,

may commence an action, in this state or elsewhere, to recover the

actual replacement cost of the marker, plus taxable costs,

reasonable attorney fees, and interest calculated under section

6013 of the revised judicature act of 1961, 1961 PA 236, MCL

600.6013. Revenue Money received under this subsection shall be

deposited in forwarded to the state treasurer for deposit into the

historical marker fund. created in section 9.

     (6) A person or agency in possession of a resource or site

where a marker is displayed shall maintain the marker in accordance

with standards prescribed by the department upon consultation with

the commission. Failure to properly maintain a marker may result in

its removal by the department.

     Sec. 8. (1) A person or agency shall not exhibit, display, or

use an official Michigan historical marker's distinctive design,

configuration, pattern, or color combination, including a facsimile

of an official Michigan historical marker, for any purpose without

the department's written permission. A person or agency that

violates this subsection is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by

imprisonment for not more than 90 days or a fine of not more than

$1,000.00, or both.

(1) (2) A person or agency shall not use for advertising,

retail sales, or any other commercial purpose without the

department's written permission any portion of the seal, emblem,

and logo that appear in the crest of an official Michigan

historical marker. A person or agency that violates this subsection

is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment for not more

than 93 days or a fine of not more than $5,000.00, or both.

(2) (3) A person or agency shall not exhibit, display, or use

a marker's seal, emblem, or logo or a marker's distinctive design,

configuration, pattern, or color combination, including an official

Michigan historical marker's facsimile, to represent his or her

property as a registered Michigan historic site. A person or agency

shall not exhibit, display, or use the seal, emblem, or logo or a

marker's distinctive design, configuration, pattern, or color

combination, including an official Michigan historical marker's

facsimile, in a manner designed to lead another person to believe

that the person's property is an official state historic site. A

person or agency that violates this subsection is guilty of a

misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment for not more than 6 months

or a fine of not less than $2,000.00 or more than $10,000.00, or

both. If a person allegedly in violation of this subsection

receives written notice from the department that the person is in

apparent violation of the subsection and the person within 60 days

of mailing of the notice ceases the violation by removing or no

longer using the seal, pattern, design, or color combination, or

facsimile, prosecution under this subsection is barred.

(3) (4) A person or agency shall not damage, destroy, deface,

remove, tamper with, alter, or possess an official Michigan

historical marker displayed at a historic resource or site without

the department's written permission. A person or agency that

violates this subsection is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by

imprisonment for not more than 93 days or a fine of not less than

$500.00 or more than $5,000.00, or both. A In addition, a person

who pleads guilty or nolo contendere or is determined guilty under

this subsection is liable to this state for a civil fine in an

amount double the cost of repair, replacement, and restoration of

the official state historic site and official Michigan historical

marker.

(4) (5) A person, including a salvage company, commercial

business, or a collector, shall not knowingly accept in trade or

possess an official Michigan historical marker. A person that

violates this subsection is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by

imprisonment for not more than 6 months or a fine of not less than

$1,000.00 or more than $10,000.00, or both. A In addition, a person

that pleads guilty or nolo contendere or is determined guilty under

this subsection is liable to this state for a civil fine in an

amount 3 times the cost of the repair, restoration, or replacement

of the official Michigan historical marker.

(5) (6) Within the first 90 days 1 year after the effective

date of the amendatory act that added amended this subsection, a

person possessing an official Michigan historical marker may return

the marker to the department or to the sheriff of the person's

county of residence without penalty for larceny or violating this

act. However, this immunity shall does not apply to a person that

removed the marker if the removal of the marker resulted in death

or personal injury. A sheriff shall hold a returned marker and

shall notify the department that a marker has been returned. The

department, with the concurrence of the commission, shall determine

the disposition of the returned marker.

(6) (7) The amounts civil fines received under the liability

provisions of subsections (4) (3) and (5) (4) shall be deposited in

forwarded to the state treasurer for deposit into the historical

marker fund. created in section 9.

     Sec. 9. (1) The department may accept gifts, grants, bequests,

and appropriations for the purpose of administering the Michigan

historical marker program, including, but not limited to, the

manufacture and placement of an official Michigan historical

marker, repair and maintenance of a marker, program administration,

application reviews, marker restoration, marker recovery, tourism

and education programs, and enforcement of this act. Money received

under this subsection shall be forwarded to the state treasurer for

deposit into the fund.

     (2) The amounts received under subsection (1) shall be

credited to a fund, which is created and shall be known as the

historical marker fund. The state treasurer shall direct the

investment of the historical marker fund and shall credit to the

fund all interest and earnings earned from fund investments. Money

in the historical marker fund at the close of the fiscal year shall

remain in the fund and shall not lapse to the general fund. On the

effective date of the amendatory act that amended this section, any

money in the historical marker fund is transferred to the fund.

     (3) Notwithstanding any balance in the historical marker fund,

nothing in this subsection shall does not obligate the department

to pay for the maintenance, repair, or replacement of an official

Michigan historical marker.

(4) (3) The department may copyright the text on an official

Michigan historical marker and may register as a trademark or

service mark the logo, seal, and emblem associated with official

Michigan historical markers. The department may license or sell

rights to publish or otherwise use copyrighted marker text and to

use the registered logo, seal, or emblem and shall deposit forward

amounts received from sales and licensing in to the state treasurer

for deposit into the historical marker fund. created in subsection

(2).

     Sec. 10. (1) An official Michigan historical marker placed to

recognize a particular historic resource may be moved to and placed

at another nearby site if the commission has been asked to give,

and has given, written permission for the move.

     (2) When developing plans for and making alterations to the

exterior of a historic resource which has been commemorated by an

official Michigan historical marker, the owner or other person in

possession of the historic resource shall follow the United States

secretary Secretary of the interior's Interior's standards for

rehabilitation and guidelines for rehabilitating historic

buildings, as set forth in 36 C.F.R. CFR part 67. , when developing

plans for and performing work on this historic resource. The owner

or other person in possession of the historic resource may ask the

center to review work plans prior to commencement of work.

     (3) The center may withdraw a marker designation and may

request the return of or may repossess an official Michigan

historical marker from a historic resource or site if the center

commission determines that the historic resource or site has lost

its historic significance or integrity.

     (4) If the center withdraws a marker designation, the person

or agency in possession of the historic resource or site shall

immediately return the marker to the center or dispose of it in a

manner prescribed by the center and documented in writing.

     Enacting section 1. This amendatory act takes effect 90 days

after the date it is enacted into law.

     Enacting section 2. This amendatory act does not take effect

unless all of the following bills of the 99th Legislature are

enacted into law:

     (a) Senate Bill No. 564.

     (b) Senate Bill No. 565.